Guide to recovery in Aceh
From the December 2008 edition of Agriculture Today.
Indonesian and NSW scientists have pooled two years of experience working together in Aceh after the devastating earthquake and tsunami, to produce a comprehensive guide to agricultural recovery after seawater inundation.
It is four years since the Indian Ocean disaster in December 2004.
"We hope our guide will help governments and aid agencies prioritise activities after future inundations," NSW Department of Primary Industries’ Aceh project officer, Gavin Tinning, said.
"Commercial interests are competing as the country rebuilds, and with the vital role of agricultural land in providing food, it is important to return it to production as quickly as possible.
"This means money and effort would not be wasted on land still affected by salinity or sediments.
"The guide is based on our experiences working in Aceh over the past two years.
"But we think it will be widely applicable, due to the increasing likelihood of productive coastal land being submerged in storm surges and rising sea levels.
"For example, the Irrawaddy Delta in Myanmar was inundated by seawater during Cyclone Nargis in May, and in the US, Texan coastal plains were flooded following Hurricane Ike.
"As well, salinisation of productive coastal rice lands in Java is becoming a major issue for the Indonesian government."
The new guide outlines the issues that need to be managed after land is inundated.
These include removal of debris and sediment, restoration of drainage and irrigation channels, salinity testing, flushing of salt, selection of crop sites, and restoration of soil fertility.
Mr Tinning said field staff from lndonesia’s Assessment Institute for Agricultural Technology had successfully demonstrated methods of restoring farming on fields affected by salt and tsunami sediments of sand, peat and mud.
"While most Acehnese farmers have been able to return to their land and re-establish cropping, climate variability is testing their capacity to adapt to changes in rainfall patterns," he said.
"Many are still struggling with drainage, partly due to a piecemeal approach to reconstruction of important irrigation and drainage infrastructure after the tsunami.
"Their high value dry season crops are being flooded but they struggle for adequate irrigation water for their staple rice crops.
"A post-tsunami boom in construction along the coastal fringe is further affecting agricultural drainage."
The success of the Aceh project, funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) has led to a second project to improve productivity of the province’s coastal farming systems.
According to a recent World Bank report, 26.5 per cent of rural households in Aceh in 2006 had expenditure levels below approximately AUD$15 per person per month, and were classed below the poverty line.
The second project will focus on increasing farm productivity, including greater use of legumes and improved fertiliser management in the dominant rice farming system on the coastal floodplains of Aceh.
Mr Tinning said part of the project would be conducted in NSW to evaluate the effects of soil carbon amendments on the water and nutrient use efficiency of soils, as well as the amount of resistant forms of carbon they store.
This research will bring benefits to both Indonesia and Australia and is funded through the ACIAR.
Contact Gavin Tinning, Wollongbar, (02) 6626 1115, gavin.tinning@dpi.nsw.gov.au or visit www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/research/projects/06P302 for the post-tsunami agriculture guide.
